The invention relates to the field of satellite spacecraft communications and, specifically, to a method and device for determining a suitable location and orientation of an antenna reception device.
Satellite TV has become a conventional system for bringing a high quality TV signal to the consumer anywhere in the world. The newer, smaller, and less obtrusive antenna reception devices have overcome much of the consumer resistence and have greatly increased the demand for satellite TV. Unfortunately, the major requirement for the best results in satellite systems is sometimes lost or not sufficiently emphasized to the buying public.
Communications with satellite spacecraft require the ground based antenna reception device to have a clear line of sight with the satellite spacecraft. Any obstruction in the path of the signal will degrade the reception. To fulfill this requirement, it is necessary for the satellite spacecraft to be located at a particular position, in space, from the antenna reception device site. Because of the distance between the communications satellite spacecraft and the earth, the angular adjustments of the antenna reception device to tune the signal are minute. Therefore, the antenna reception device must be located rather precisely.
Before installing an antenna reception device, the site should be surveyed to determine the suitability of the location. As part of the survey, the position of the satellite spacecraft relative to the site must be established. The instrument and method of this invention may be used to target the satellite spacecraft thereby producing a line of sight between the satellite spacecraft and the instrument. Simply by looking through the instrument, the presence or absence of obstructions between the antenna reception device site and the satellite spacecraft may be observed.
Presently, most of the satellite spacecraft receivers have a tuning meter built within the unit as an aid to installation of the antenna reception device. The tuning meter merely indicates the presence of an acceptable signal without directional guidance. Further, the TV and the antenna reception device system have to be hooked up to operate the tuning meter. This means that if there is no acceptable signal in a preselected location, the antenna reception device and whatever securing means necessary for fixing it in place has to be disassembled and reassembled in another location. The tedious search for the satellite spacecraft then begins again with minute movements of the TV antenna reception device monitored by the tuning meter.
This invention arrives from the need for a device in the satellite communications field that will accurately locate a satellite spacecraft""s position in outer space with respect to the proposed antenna reception device""s site location. The consumer is also in need of a device that will allow the consumer the ability to perform this location task independently without the assistance of an installer. Since the explosion of the satellite communications field in the late 1980""s and 90""s, the tremendous increase of installations and the user friendliness of electronics has left one area of this field stagnant. This area is the area of site location.
Since satellite spacecraft reception requires a line of site free from obstructions, many locations have proven to be non obstacle free and from that less than adequate reception has been realized. The antenna receiver electronics of today have a turning meter built within the unit to locate the spacecraft signal but the complete unit must be installed completely before this process of turning can be started. All too many times the installer realizes that a location is inadequate for reception and the antenna reception device must be disassembled and relocated elsewhere. This trial and error method has proved so costly to the installer that a continuous turnover of competent installers has been experienced in this particular field along with dissatisfaction in the consumer market of satellite communications reliability.
This invention, which has global accuracy, fills this void by the novel inventions incorporated within it. This invention will allow consumers and professionals to achieve accurate antenna reception device locations, adequate installations, and to realize the value and potential of received signals globally without the extra costs and time now needed to perform these tasks. This invention eliminates this inefficiency and allows the consumer, globally, to install an antenna reception device by following the layman friendly procedures incorporated in this invention.
This invention can also be used as a teaching aid in schools for scientific and cultural advancements and awareness of the boundless applications that this field can deliver. The novelties of this invention views the satellite spacecraft""s true position in relationship to the antenna reception device""s proposed site before installation has taken place, thereby ruling out inadequate locations. Since inferior locations can reduce an antenna reception device""s gain, thereby reducing the signal amount and even loss of the entire reception, this invention proves valuable to the professional, the instructor and consumer alike. Once positioned, the invention can be moved to other locations within the same latitude requiring only the leveling of the invention again.
This invention goes steps further by achieving the satellite spacecraft""s position, locating the antenna reception device""s ground position, and ruling out sites that do not achieve these objectives. This is achieved by a novel set of steps and alignment coordinates that reduce the error of site location and satellite spacecraft position along with precise laser manufacturing techniques. The remaining novelty is the invention""s simplicity to be used world wide and by everyone without in-depth knowledge of the satellite communications field.
Some of the novelties incorporated within this invention include a declination slider which changes the field of view within the viewing lens yielding a precise position of the satellite spacecraft within the Clark belt orbit and normally overlooked by the standard azimuth, elevation method. This measurement is critical when targeting a spacecraft for reception from the Clark belt. The second novelty is the procedure for shifting the coordinates from magnetic north and south to true north and south coordinates. This is achieved by an azimuth dial that first corrects the error from a compass dial to that of true headings and then allows the pointer a place of origin from which to base the azimuth headings for the intended targeting of that particular spacecraft of interest. This procedure eliminates errors caused by unnecessary m movements that could induce error in the calculations. The third novelty are friction reducing surfaces such as Teflon and nylon which allows easy alignment of each coordinate and dual color graphics on the graduations scale for concise alignment of each coordinate.
Once these tasks are completed the entire device is tilted to the perspective site""s latitude and completes the alignment yielding the exact spacecraft""s position and any obstacles or obstructions that may interfere with the antenna reception device site line of sight viewing angle. These precise procedures provide a highly competent means of spacecraft position targeting and eliminate the tedious time consuming trial and error methods of the past. The antenna reception device can now be erected and the tuning meter enclosed within the receiver used to peak the signal for maximum reception.
Accordingly, it is an objective of the instant invention to teach a method of establishing the suitability of an antenna reception device location.
It is a further objective of the instant invention to provide a lightweight, inexpensive, mechanical device to execute the method and target a satellite spacecraft position.
It is a further objective of the instant invention to provide an instrument that permits visual inspection of the line of sight between the instrument and a targeted satellite spacecraft.
It is also an objective of the instant invention to provide an instrument that permits observations of celestial positions based on True North by conversion of positions based on magnetic compass determination of magnetic North.
It is yet another objective of the instant invention to provide an instrument to determine azimuth, and inclination to a celestial satellite spacecraft position in space from any geographical location.
Other objectives and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, certain embodiments of this invention. The drawings constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and features thereof.